Last year one of my favorite bloggers -
Allison at House of Hepworths - published a list of
24 Projects I Should Have Finished By Now! She may think she is alone, but I think we ALL have a list like this. I know that we do...
Now, this white board in our office is part "To Do List" and part "Dream Board". A few of the items on there, like new furniture, hardwood floors and redo backyard/pool area are definitely long-term goals that will involve a fair amount of money saving and planning. But if we also know that with hard work, these visions for our future will come true!
But back to the here and now. Like
Allison, we have a more realistic to do list that is filled with projects that need to get done - sooner than later. Some of the items are general maintenance, some of the items are unfinished projects, some are simple decor solutions that just need to be started (and completed) and most of the projects will help us reach our home goals for 2012.
So here is OUR Project List! And like Allison, we are giving ourselves a deadline. Let's see how many of these projects we can knock off our list by April 15th, 2012. Tax day! I know, kind of a sick joke but maybe it will make us feel better when Uncle Sam comes a knocking!
{ Project #1 }
Complete Organization of Home Office/Craft Room
This project has been on the list ever since we moved in and while I started last week with great enthusiasm, I have slowed to a halt. I have mostly completed the craft supplies and now we need to finish sorting through the office supplies and finding a home for everything.
Replace popped light switches {DONE}
One of the "issues" we had to deal with when we bought a foreclosure was minor repairs caused by upset home owners. One of these projects was popped light switches. We bought a contractors pack of new switches and while we replaced most of them, we missed a couple (either that or a couple of them have started show the wear and tear). Simple project, we have everything on hand, just need to finish it!
Touch up paint in all rooms
We painted EVERY room in our home when we bought it at the end of 2010. A little over a year later, there are the inevitable nicks and scratches. Need to pull out each color and touch up each and every room.
Decide on artwork for above the fireplace
We have a friend whose husband is an amazing photographer. We just need to decide on one of the photos, get the file, order the picture and get it framed. Seems easy enough, well except for the picking a photo part - they are all so amazing. This spot is screaming for a beautiful piece of art.
{ Project #5 }
Level the A/C unit
When we had our house painted this summer, our contractor let us know that due to erosion, our A/C unit was not level which is why it makes so much noise (vibrating) when it is running. This unit sits outside our bedroom and is loud. All we need to do is go out and re-level it. Easy peasy!
Elastek the flat parts of the roof
In Arizona, homes often have flat roofs. Ours has a combination of a flat roof and a slanted tile roof. Due to the intense sun, it is critical to re-seal the roof every few years. We fixed a couple of "leaks" earlier this year when we noticed a wet spot in our front room but we really need to go in and put a coat of Elastek (a rubber sealant) on the entire surface.
Repair and repaint ceiling in front room {DONE}
Last summer we had a water leak in the front room due to some drainage issues on the roof. My awesome husband repaired the roof but we waited to do the interior repair. While it doesn't rain here often, it has enough to know that the leak is fixed. Now to fix the ceiling, add texture and paint.
{ Project #8 }
Recover Dining Chairs
Our dining room chairs are beyond nasty. They are in desperate need of new coverings. Two kids have done quite a number on them. Between food stains and snags caused by Velcro shoes - let's just say, it is time for some style. I even have the fabric (2 different ones as a matter of fact). Now to just get it done.
{ Project #9 }
Donate big items taking up space in garage.
We have this awesome "extra" single stall garage connected to our house. It is perfect for storage in Arizona since we do not have basements or attics. HOWEVER, it becomes a dumping ground where stuff we need to get rid of goes to hide. We don't go in this garage will often so it is easy to forget what is in there. The old electronics and boxes have been there for over a year now. We meant to get them donated in 2010 for the tax receipt but didn't get it done. So we knew we would get it done in 2011. Guess what, it is 2012 - it is all still there and there is even more. Get it done!
Hang ceiling rack in small garage
In our old house, my Dad helped us build an awesome overhead garage organizer using angle iron and 2x4s. It was great for those items that are rarely if ever used but need a home such as skis, scuba gear, extra carpet, etc. We later purchased a 2nd smaller one from Costco. It sat in the garage at our old house for several years and now sits in this garage. Time to get it installed and get the garage organized.
{ Project #11 }
Organize garage
We recently added some great garage cabinets from my husband's parents as well as having the above ceiling rack. Now we need to find a home for everything in our two garages. My daughter and I both got bikes for Christmas but our bikes need a home! I am tired of climbing over stuff to find the one thing I want, way in the back.
{ Project #12 }
Move daughter's clothes to her room. {DONE}
In our last house, we had my daughter's dresser inside her closet and it was awesome. However our closets are slightly smaller here and the dresser drawers wouldn't open since the doors are in the way. Ultimately we would like to put a whole closet system in both of the kids closets. Right now our daughter's dresser is in the guest room next door since she already had a lot of furniture in her room. Well, my Mom is coming to stay with us for a month and we decided we didn't need to invade her space each day to get clothes so we are going to trade some furniture around.
Secure slide out shelf in liquor cabinet {DONE}
I know how this one sounds and honestly, we are not big drinkers but we do keep some bottles around for parties and entertaining. My Dad suggested we move one of the slide-out shelves in a small cupboard to the bottom to allow for the taller bottles to fit. This worked great and the pull out shelf makes it much easier to find what we are looking for. Unfortunately, I took the shelf out but never got it secured. So it sits on the bottom of the cabinet. It is likely a 10 minute project that has taken a year and a half to complete!
{ Project #14 }
Find plants or other filler for the pots out front
I found these awesome planters on deep clearance at Target last year. I love them. The problem is, our house is south facing in the hot Arizona sun. Last fall I put mums in them and despite watering them daily, they were completely fried by two weeks later. I need to go to the nursery to see what they suggest as "gardening" in Arizona is an art and finding xeriscape plants is critical. Xeriscaping is gardening and landscaping with native plants that minimize the need for supplemental watering. I am not good at "watering", especially when it needs to be done more than once a day so Xeriscaping is my answer.
Window treatments for my daughter's room {DONE}
We completed awesome window treatments for my son last year and I love them. My daughter has been bugging for curtains too. Guess we need to head to SAS Fabric (our favorite discount fabric store) and find a fun, girly fabric to make her curtains. There have been some awesome tutorials lately so it should be a quick project once we decide on a fabric.
{ Project #16 }
Finish the grommets on my son's curtains {DONE}
As mentioned above, I made curtains for my son's room last year and they are great. We used these great snap together grommets. They are really cool but can be quite stubborn to snap together. I was so excited to hang them up, I left a couple of the grommets off. Time to finish this project once and for all.
{ Project #17}
Replace trash and recycle bin in kitchen {DONE}
We are big on recycling in our house so we keep a small bin in the kitchen to separate our trash immediately. The reality is, we generally have more (or at least as much) recycling as we do trash - and probably would have more if we had a bigger container. I have been looking for a slim can that we could use side by side in the kitchen so that this area not only looks good but is more functional.
{ Project #18 }
Window treatments in living and dining area
Having a big open concept area with 2-story ceilings is awesome. However, it can also be very loud with so many hard surfaces. The north facing wall of the room is largely windows. Since they are north facing, we generally don't have to worry about blocking sun so the window coverings would largely be decorative. However that function is critical in providing some sound muffling and of course decorative appeal. Again, need to SAS and find some awesome fabric to make some simple drapes for this window.
{ Project #19 }
Window treatments in master bedroom
We have lots of windows in our master bedroom as well. I love the light it brings in, however not so much at 5am. Some beautiful decorative drapes would be awesome. I would love for these to be lined to offer better light control as well as offering some style and charm to our room.
{ Project #20 }
Shelving/Storage in front hall closet
We have a great coat closet near our front door. The thing is, we live in Arizona and rarely wear coats. This closet has deep insets to each side which makes the closet perfect for storage. I would like to add a couple of shelves to offer better storage. Should be a quick and easy project, just need to do it!
{ Project #21 }
Laundry basket organizer for laundry room
I redid the laundry room last year and I love it. However, we don't have a great place to store the laundry baskets. Additionally, there is this space to the right of the freezer that becomes a catch-all pile of stuff that doesn't seem to have a home. I want to build a simple storage unit that holds 3 or 4 laundry baskets for both storage and function.
{ Project #22 }
Redo lamp for guest bedroom {DONE}
A few months ago my husband stopped at my favorite Goodwill store on 50% Saturday. He had never been there so this was an experience. I think he is slowly catching on to the idea of thrifting and making stuff new again. He picked up this small lamp which will be great in our guest room. Quick coat of spray paint, a nice shade and it is perfect.
{ Project #23 }
Hang up Dad's tools in garage
My wonderful Dad passed away almost 2 years ago now. He was an amazing woodworker and all around handy man. We rarely hired someone to fix anything, Dad and my brothers would take care of it. When Mom asked us what she should do with all of Dad's tools I spoke up and said I wanted a couple of items to hang in my garage as a reminder of his hard work and determination. I didn't care if it actually still worked, I wanted it for sentimental and decorative reasons. I mean, really, why shouldn't I decorate my garage!
{ Project #24 }
Replace Light Bulb in Oven {DONE}
Remember a few weeks ago when we had to replace the glass on the front of our oven? Well, while we were at it we should have replaced the light bulb too but we forgot. It burned out a week or so before Christmas and we keep forgetting to pick one up. It should be a quick job but why is it that those are the projects that take forever to complete.
